Not with a bang, but a whimper
by LadyCash
Summary: Koga's back, but this time Kagome is determined to end things differently. Will InuYasha approve?


Another riff on the Kag/Kog 'breakup'. A bit different from my 'Oh, Really?', but hopefully fun, nonetheless. Enjoy!

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Not with a bang, but a whimper

The end of Koga's unrelenting obsession with Kagome came not with a bang, but a whimper. The tachi were traveling very near his home base, so it was no surprise that he should show up one afternoon.

His appearance on the horizon was heralded by Kagome's sharply uplifted head, followed immediately thereafter by slumped shoulders. It was hot, she was tired, and did this really have to happen now? She and InuYasha had been growing closer, and Kagome had hopes, real hopes, that he would break out of his shell soon.

This development threatened to set that back weeks, and that was something she would not allow. Firming her jaw, Kagome decided that THIS time, things would end differently, for all of them.

"Oi, wench," InuYasha called, from the rear of the group, "what's up?"

She sighed and merely waved a hand in the direction needed. As usual, curses soon peppered the air, and Sango and Miroku groaned. They really didn't have time for this now.

Tetsuiga was drawn, InuYasha took up his usual stance and their friends got out of the way. Kagome however, kept on walking, dodging around her hanyou protector to do so. If things were to change, she would have to be the one to do it.

"Kagome?" InuYasha asked, confused.

She shook her head and kept walking. Soon enough, the wolf prince was upon them. He blew right past InuYasha and the others, and seamlessly fell into step next to her. As his arm went to reach around her and gather her against him, she gave an impressive growl. "Don't touch me."

He was sweaty and rather pungent, and she didn't want to share that particular trait, not having a hot spring and bath time available. Plus, InuYasha would burst a vein.

Koga arched a brow, but shrugged it off good naturedly. "How's my woman, today?"

She cut him a sharp glance. "I'm fine, but I'm not your woman, Koga."

"Not yet, but you will be soon! Once I defeat Nara-"

She spun on him with the ferocity of a tiger. "NO!"

This caused the group behind them to gape, and InuYasha to pause, the better to access this new development.

Kagome pinched the bridge of her nose, closed her eyes, and counted to ten. Twice. "Look Koga, can we talk?"

He cocked his head at her, and gave a charming grin. "Of course, sweets. Anything you desire."

Nodding sharply once, she threw the gang a warning glare. "Do not follow us."

Then, she forgot about Koga-sweat and grabbed him by the arm to haul him some ways up the road. "Park it."

"Eh?" he said, giving her a look.

"Sit down, Koga," she ordered. "I am going to talk and you are going to listen. Do not speak unless you are asked a direct question, got it?"

This new side of Kagome was fascinating, and Koga really kind of liked it. He ignored the similarities between her behavior and a certain red haired wolf princess, however. He nodded agreeably. "Of course, my love."

Kagome narrowed her eyes. "You do not love me, Koga. You only think you do."

He went to speak but she slashed her hand at him and he shut his mouth with a click.

"You love the IDEA of me. Really, Koga, you don't even know me," she started.

"That's not true-" he started.

"Hush! I'm talking here," Kagome snarled. Even from a distance, InuYasha was impressed. He wasn't sure where this was going, and he still wanted to eviscerate the wolf, but he would wait, for now to see how this turned out. One wrong move, however…

"Tell me, Koga," Kagome asked, "what's my favorite color?"

"Eh? Your favorite-"

"What's my favorite food, favorite book, favorite song? When was I born? What about my family? What do I like to do for fun?" she pressed. "Can you tell me?"

He looked at her open mouthed. "Um…"

"Exactly," she nodded. "InuYasha?"

"Blue, oden, Girl in Translation, Breathe, in the Spring, mom-brother-grandpa, play Go," her hanyou rattled off, with more than a touch of smugness in his voice.

"You see," Kagome continued, "there's nothing between us but what you've built up in your mind. We're practically strangers!"

Now Koga was nothing if not determined, so he ignored her edict of silence and spoke up. "I could change that, Kagome. Say you're mine and I will devote all my time to learning everything about you."

She snorted. "What about Naraku?"

Before he could speak again, she went on. "How about stopping three or more times a day for meals, rest, bathroom breaks?"

Kagome ignored his confusion over 'bathroom' and got down to the nitty gritty. "What about children?"

"Eh? What about them?" he asked, completely nonplussed at the direction this talk had just taken.

"Do you want them, Koga? Children?" she asked.

He frowned. "Well, of course I do. I have to rebuild my pack after all-"

"Exactly!" she interjected. "And how will you do that with me, a human?"

He scowled. "I don't see-"

"Hanyou, Koga! Our children would be hanyou. Are you willing to go that far? Really?" she pressed.

Koga sat back, unprepared for this discussion. "I'd…that is…"

Kagome sighed. "Look, you're the prince of the Eastern Tribe. You have a duty to repopulate your people. You cannot do that with a human. You need another wolf youkai."

Koga immediately protested. "Oh no, don't you start about Ayame. That's over and done."

"It is not," Kagome insisted. "She is a full ookami-youkai, a princess with her own full tribe, and she WANTS YOU. It's only your own stubborn head stopping you from seeing it."

He wanted to protest, to say that it was his heart that was the issue. However, with her previous words ringing in his head, he now acknowledged that his mind was joining the battle. This did not make him happy.

"I'm a fun, happy dream for you," Kagome said. "You can breeze in, throw your pretty words around, and leave feeling good about yourself. No worries, no commitments. But that doesn't translate well into real life."

He turned to her then, eyes fierce. "I do worry about you, Kagome. And my feelings are very real, not some dream."

The young woman sighed. "I know you care about me, Koga. But you have to dial back this crazy obsession. It's going nowhere, and it's interfering in the shard hunt, and the battle with Naraku. I like you fine, Koga, but I will never be your woman."

The sound of Tetsuiga being slid home in it's sheathe punctuated her words.

"She's right," InuYasha commented, arms folding up in his sleeves. "You need a full youkai, not some human." _And definitely not MY human._ "Go find Ayame, wolf."

 _Not helping, InuYasha,_ Kagome thought, throwing him a warning glance. She took the moment to pull Koga up from his position on the log.

"We'll always be friends, I promise," she said softly. He really did have gorgeous eyes, she thought, and went on tiptoe to brush her lips against his cheek. He whimpered.

"Kagome…" he murmured, bringing his fingers up to touch that now sacred spot.

"Go, avenge your pack, find Ayame, and make lots of ookami babies," she grinned. "But don't be a stranger, okay? Friends stay in touch."

He swallowed hard, but didn't argue.

"Yeah, I guess they do," he said. "You're an incredible woman, Kagome. You're going to make someone a fine wife someday."

She beamed at him, but froze when he leaned in and gently pressed his own lips to her forehead. "I'll be around, sweets."

"I know you will," she smiled. He reached out, as if to touch her, but pulled back at the last minute. The wolf prince gave her one last wishful glance, and was gone in a swirl of wind. He had a lot to think about.

Kagome sighed and braced for the inevitable.

"Did you have to let him kiss you, wench?!"


End file.
